“After ten years of watching Web users, one clear conclusion is that they are utterly selfish and live in the moment. Giving users exactly what they want, right now, is the road to Web success.”
— Alertbox, April 21, 2003
Category Archives: Media & Culture
18 Years
Yesterday the Missouri Supreme Court overturned the death sentence and conviction of Joseph Amrine, 46, of Kansas City. He’s faced execution since 1986 for the stabbing of a fellow inmate. Over the years, the three former inmates who testified against him recanted. He was in for robbery, burglary and forgery and would have been out 1992 had he not been convicted of murder. If he walks free, he will become only the third Missouri death row inmate in modern times to be freed of his capital conviction. One of our reporters, John Davis, interviewed Amrine today. It runs about 15 minutes. You can also listen to the oral argument before the Missouri Supreme Court on February 4th. This strikes me as a good example of how the web –more specifically, streaming audio– enables a news organization like ours to go way beyond a 4-minute newscast with a couple of sound bites.
Doc Searls, David Weinberger: Net fundamentals.
“When we look at utility poles, we see networks as wires. And we see those wires as parts of systems: The phone system, the electric power system, the cable TV system. When we listen to radio or watch TV, we’re told during every break that networks are sources of programming being beamed through the air or through cables. But the Internet is different. It isn’t wiring. It isn’t a system. And it isn’t a source of programming.”
1. The Internet isn’t complicated
2. The Internet isn’t a thing. It’s an agreement.
3. The Internet is stupid.
4. Adding value to the Internet lowers its value.
5. All the Internet’s value grows on its edges.
6. Money moves to the suburbs.
7. The end of the world? Nah, the world of ends.
8. The Internets three virtues:
– a. No one owns it
– b. Everyone can use it
– c. Anyone can improve it
9. If the Internet is so simple, why have so many been so boneheaded about it?
10. Some mistakes we can stop making already
“a virtual, centralized grand database”
“Every purchase you make with a credit card, every magazine subscription you buy and medical prescription you fill, every Web site you visit and e-mail you send or receive, every academic grade you receive, every bank deposit you make, every trip you book and every event you attend all these transactions and communications will go into what the Defense Department describes as “a virtual, centralized grand database.”
From a William Safire Op/Ed piece in the NY Times.
Doc Searls: TV is dead
“With (Bill Maher) and Miller gone, what’s left? Letterman’s fangs wore to nubs ten years ago. Leno replaced McMahon, not Carson. News? The Big Three are relics. Decoys. Rather and Jennings are human furniture. CNN is a talking scroll. The only fun at Fox is watching Greta’s old face come back.”
Doc Searls: Customers and Consumers
A-List blogger Doc Searls was once a radio guy and is not happy about the state of commercial radio. He makes a strong, clear point I’ve struggled with for 30 years.
“Commercial radio’s customers are its advertisers. It’s consumers are its listeners. Its business is selling air time to advertisers. It raises the value of that air time by attracting the largest possible number of listeners, in the most desirable demographics. How it does that is irrelevant to the business itself.”
He references a story by Jennifer Davies in the San Diego Union-Tribune (Corporate radio has pulled the plug on many a radio personality) that’s depressing –but hardly surprising– to this one-time DJ.
“The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates there will be an almost 8 percent decline in need for broadcasting announcers in both radio and TV because of industry consolidation. In addition, pay for radio announcers is stagnating with the average hourly salary of around $9.”
And as for tomorrow’s listeners?
“Teen-agers no longer take their cues from radio, searching out new music online instead. Since 1998, teen-age males listen to the radio almost 7 percent less a week. Teen-age females’ weekly radio listening is down close to 9 percent. Teen-agers listen to the radio less than any other age group, according to Arbitron.”
Douglas Rushkoff on AOL
“AOL never had a future. AOL was a training ground. An introduction to the Internet for people who didn’t know how to deal with ftp protocols. None of us thought it could last, because once the technological barriers to entry for the Internet had been lowered, no one would need AOL’s simplistic interface or it’s child-safe, digital content wading pools. People would want to get on the *real* Internet, using real browsers and email programs.” — Douglas Rushkoff
Lesbian Chat Rooms
They delivered our new refrigerator a few days ago. The guy in charge was in his mid-30s, early-40s. The younger guy was a sophomore in high school. As they wrestled the box down from the pick-up truck, I asked the young guy if he’d rather be online. “You bet he would!” , said the older guy. “So would you,” offered the teenager. I asked the older guy how he spent his time online and –before he could answer– his assistant said: “Lesbian Chat Rooms.” The older guys jumped in with something like, “You mind your own business now.” It was a topic they had discussed previously.
Now, I’m as fascinated by Lesbians as any other heterosexual male, but my first thought was: The Internet is here to stay. When the guys (representing two generations) delivering my refrigerator spend enough time online to make their way to the Lesbian chat rooms… well, this just isn’t a fad. The Net has achieved penetration.
Internet of things
“One day every possession will be tagged, and a radio signal will reveal the location of every object. That’s my dream. In the meantime, I’m going to attach my web address to everything valuable that might get lost.”
— Nick Denton has a dream and a good idea.
Mark Cuban on Webcasting
I met Mark Cuban –briefly– during the early days of Audio.net (which later became Broadcast.com). He met us at a Kansas City hotel to pitch us on the idea of letting him stream some of our sports broadcasts. We did a deal — not a very good one– but passed up a chance to purchase 10% of his fledgling company. I came away thinking he was too slick by half. But he sure had balls and a lot of confidence and now he has billions and an NBA team. And, as Doc Searls points out, Cuban is fearless. Check out what he told Kurt Hanson about the Yahoo/RIAA deal he put together before leaving Yahoo.